Tina Amanda
The West African Examination Council (WAEC) South-South Zonal office has urged all Principals of public and private schools to ensure that candidates participating in the 2020 WASSCE are arranged according to the specific sitting position which minimum of two meters apart.
Zonal Coordinator of WAEC, Gershon Dandak, who stated this during a webinar meeting organised for Principals of schools and supervisors for WASSCE 2020, said all WAEC laid down protocols for protecting candidates from COVID-19 infection must be strictly observed.
Dandak also advised Principals to consider themselves as Chief invigilators who should discourage every form of extortion by supervisors or exam malpractice.
“Principal’s should ensure that all halls to be used for the WASSCE 2020 are safe. They should maintain the two meters apart sitting arrangements. Proper ventilation, periodic decontamination of all the furniture should be carried out and the strict use of facemask must be enforced.
“If a candidate is feeling sick and still wants to continue with the examination, such person should be kept in a separate hall away from other candidates.
“Question paper bag must come to each school unopened with a key lock. No question paper must be turned out. Principals must witness the unsealing of envelopes containing answer sheets.
“It baffles me that a WAEC invigilator goes for supervision to extort candidates of a school. As principals of schools, it is up to you to ensure this extortion is not done. Any student involved in exam malpractice, we will trace it back to the school, the culprit and the school management will be adequately punished.
“Any WAEC Supervisor demanding for money should be reported to the Police and the Police should detain him or her for a period of two weeks”
He also appealed to schools not to stop any student from writing the WASSCE 2020, as a result of administrative fees owed by the candidate.
“We appeal that no candidate should be disallowed from writing the WASSCE examination for the reason of owing administrative fees. Allow the students to write, later we will strategies on ways to collect the money from such individual, because stopping the candidate from participating is not the best”
On his part, Commissioner for Education, Professor Kaniye Ebeku, who was represented by the Director, Secondary Education, Sokari Davies, urged Principals and supervisors to conduct and comport themselves during the WASSCE 2020, as the ministry will not hesitate to blacklist any school or supervisor found wanting.
“The Ministry is working together with WAEC to ensure the success of the 2020 WASSCE examination in the state. We are on the same page that any school or supervisor caught in malpractice will not be spared. Allow the students to do their work. I heard schools are contributing money for what I do not know, no invigilator should ask for gratification from any school.
“We want Rivers State to come first in this year’s WASSCE examinatio., We have been taking fourth all the time, to come out first requires a lot of Hard work and integrity. The Commissioner will be going round to monitor the examination, so avoid being blacklisted”
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